AN: Thank you all so much for your support so far! I just wanted to make a note that since FF does not allow explicit content, I have posted the implied NSFW scene from Thieves Work Alone on Archive of our Own (/works/10914021). Thank you so much for your support, and as always, enjoy!

Zaron, 18 Years Ago

"Catch me! CATCH ME!"

A shrill, childish voice echoed through the gardens as the princess went darting between the rose bushes. Her long hair flowed behind her as she sprinted, nearly tripping over her dress as she navigated the mazes of overgrown foliage.

"Catch me first! Catch me instead!" an even younger voice called from the opposite direction. Out from another bunch of rose bushes popped a tiny face, wide grin displaying baby teeth and sweet little dimples. The four year old boy let out a happy giggle as he darted back behind them, running along the pathway in an attempt to stay hidden. His eyes were stuck behind him, looking, looking-

"Gotcha!" An older boy dressed in light armor and a long blue cape stood before him, arms outstretched and knees crouched to his level. The little boy let out a happy screech as his captor lifted him off the ground, ticking his sides.

"Ya got me, Douchebag," he teased, tiny hands reaching out and squishing the knight's cheeks.

"I told you to stop calling me that," he sighed, rolling his eyes. He cradled the boy in his arms, pouting his lips in response to his squeezing. "Did Kenny teach you that, Clyde?"

"Mmmmm…yeah," the toddler replied, thoughtfully tilting his head. "She said it first."

"Little brat," the knight laughed, quickly depositing the boy onto the ground again. "Come on, let's go chase her. Think we can catch her?" He quickly took his hand, leading him back into the center of the garden.

"Where she go?" Clyde asked softly, looking side to side.

"She's being sneaky," he replied, laughing a little. "I'm sure she's somewhere… here, Clyde, I have an idea." He bent down low until the little boy could see his face, looking into his eyes. "Climb onto my shoulders and I'll lift you wayyyy up high above the bushes. Then I bet you could see, what do you think?"

Clyde nodded quickly, clapping his hands and wiggling back and forth with excitement. With a little help he managed to climb up onto the knight's shoulders. "Lift me," he commanded, pointing a finger towards the sky. With another giggle, the knight took hold of his legs and hoisted him up. As soon as he was high enough, the tiny boy began to search, hands over his eyes like binoculars.

"See her?"

Clyde hesitated, frowning. "Hmmm…ahhh…Oh! Oh! KENNY! I SEE YOU!" he shouted, pointing towards her hiding spot near the edge of the garden.

"NO FAIR!" she screamed back. "YOU CHEATED!"

"Did not!" the knight shouted back, setting Clyde to the ground again. "You better run before I catch you and EAT you!"

"Douchebag! Douchebag!" the girl chanted, almost mockingly. The knight took off running down the garden path towards where Clyde had spotted her, the toddler struggling to keep up.

"I'm gonna put a silencing spell on you if you call me that one more time," he threatened playfully. There she stood, right where Clyde said. As soon as she saw him she screamed, a huge grin on her face as she took off in the other direction.

"CAN'T CATCH ME!"

"We'll see about that!" He took off running after her, but she was just too quick. She stumbled a bit as she twisted and turned through the bushes, trying to confuse him.

"Hey, wait, Kenny, slow down, you're gonna trip!"

"Am not!" she yelled back. "You're just saying that so I'll—AAH!" Before she could finish her sentence, her feet became tangled in her dress and she went tumbling to the ground.

"Shit—Kenny, hey, are you okay?" The knight quickly stopped running, staring at the child who now sat sniffling on the garden pathway. Slowly she lifted her dress to show a pair of skinned knees and scraped shins.

"Aw, Ken, you felled," Clyde commented, moving closer. "She's got hurt now."

"Here, let me see," he said quickly, moving closer and kneeling beside her. He inspected the tiny wounds, shaking his head and tutting his tongue with mock concern. "Hmm… well, I guess I could fix it."

Kenny's eyes lit up. "Ooh! Do the magic! Do the magic!" she begged, looking a little less teary.

"Yeah, do it!" Clyde echoed, clapping his hands.

"Alright… watch this." The knight closed his eyes, slowly lifting his hands. A gentle yellow glow began to form in his palms as the children watched in amazement. He carefully pressed his hands to each of her knees, exhaling. As soon as the light faded, the wounds were no more.

"Woooooow!" Kenny shouted, rubbing at them. "It's like it wasn't even there!"

"I've been practicing," he admitted, rubbing at his shoulder. "Been training hard for the kings… you never know when it'll come in handy. They said I've been making fantastic progress."

"Soon I'm gonna learn too," Clyde piped up, raising one hand into the air. "Mr. Wizard Eric said when I'm…uh… this many."

"That's five, Clyde, that's five," the knight laughed, scooping up the boy again. "And when you do, I bet you'll be the best magician the world's ever seen."

Present Day

The monks had given Tweek and Feldspar a few minutes to prepare themselves before the urgent training began.

"You're oddly… confident," Feldspar noted, taking a seat on the floor beside his boyfriend. Indeed, Tweek was acting more fearless than usual. "I haven't seen you like this since you first pointed an arrow to my head and threatened to kill me."

Tweek laughed softly, shaking his head as he closed his eyes. "I remember that," he said, recalling memories. "You had the dumbest look on your face; I just couldn't shoot something that helpless."

"Very funny," Feldspar grumbled, but he couldn't help but grin.

"No, no, I'm…I'm kidding. I didn't realize it at the time, but… maybe I thought that dumb look was pretty cute." Tweek blushed a little, tilting his head so it could rest on Feldspar's shoulder. "I'm glad I didn't shoot."

"I'm glad you didn't either," he replied bluntly, kissing the top of his head.

"I…I don't think I could have made it through any of this alone." Tweek's hand slowly snuck out from his cape, tangling fingers with the thief. "I'm not as strong as I like to pretend. Without you, I'd still be convinced I needed to prove something. You're always there, you know? The moment I decided I wouldn't kill you, you kept coming back to me, telling me I was worth it, telling me that I'd already done enough. I'm…you're…uh…"

"Hey, it's fine." Feldspar grinned, using his free hand to tilt Tweek's chin to face him. Their eyes met before he kissed him gently, pulling away with an even bigger smile. "I understand… I love you too."

Tweek only smiled back, eyes drifting closed in comfort.

"Come on, lovebirds, hurry up. It's time to get started!"

The shrill voice of Phillip jerked them back into reality. Hands still intertwined, they stood up, stepping forward towards the circular rug. The room had been cleared except for the two of them and the monks, the others waiting patiently outside. Terrence and Philip insisted that they needed to be completely free of distraction to effectively train.

Terrence gently placed a candle onto the center of the floor, right in the middle of the rug. It was glowing redder than either of them had ever seen a candle glow.

"What's that for?" Feldspar asked, curiosity getting the best of him.

"It's for minding your own business, buddy," Phillip stated, giving him a look. Terrence had already begun to circle the room, blowing out all of the other candles. "In all honesty, it's just to set the mood. We need complete tranquility in this room before we can pass down the ancient wisdom. Also we like the color red, if you couldn't tell by our temple."

"Figures," the thief muttered, rolling his eyes. He watched as Terrence blew out the last candle, and then pulled a dark curtain over the glass windows on the wall. The room was pitch black except for the single glowing candle illuminating their faces.

"Thief… barbarian… are you ready to embark on a journey into your soul?" Terrence asked dramatically, waving his hand over the top of the candle. "This will take all the strength in your mortal body, all of your mind power. You must connect with yourself inside and out, friend."

Tweek took a shaking breath, starting to become nervous. It was only when Feldspar squeezed his hand that he managed to relax, eyes closing again. There was nothing to be afraid of, he knew that. As long as he could keep his masked anxieties where they belonged, everything would be okay. Feldspar told him he was strong. Feldspar said he was brave. He could do this. "I'm ready."

Feldspar echoed his reply, both of them stepping closer to the candle in a wide stance, hands clasped tightly.

"The first thing we need to do," instructed Phillip, "is enter the mindscape. This is the prime ground for learning powerful magic, but it can only be accessed with a tranquil mind. This may seem difficult, but I assure you buddy; it is the easiest part of this training process."

Tweek shuddered at the thought, but was quickly soothed again by Feldspar's whispers. "It's fine, just relax. I told you, you've got this… you've got me."

"We'll get through this together."

"That's right."

Tweek took another slow breath, eyes closing. "How do we access the mindscape?"

"Keep your head low and your eyes shut. Regulate your breathing to the slowest it can go," Phillip said. Both monks stepped forward, extending their arms. A hand rested on each of the heroes' shoulders. "Imagine an empty void, nothing but pure white. We'll get you the rest of the way."

In no time their breathing began to slow, almost as if they were asleep. With the dead silence of the room and the dancing light of the candle, they couldn't help but slip into a dream-like trance. "This is it," Tweek thought, starting to feel something stirring in his chest. Tt was as if he was traveling through a tunnel at a very fast speed, the wind whipping all around him. The light from beyond their closed eyes faded into complete darkness until they were suddenly confronted with pure white.

Tweek swore he had never opened his eyes, but here he was, surely looking around in a sort of new world. "Woah," he breathed, almost afraid to move. He had no shadow below him, no ground; just a white void.

"Welcome to the mindscape," Philip said calmly. The barbarian looked up, eyes wide with alarm. There the monks were, standing just in front of him. To his left he found Feldspar, looking equally confused and dazed. He quickly squeezed the hand he was holding, just to be sure he was really there. Feldspar squeezed back. Everything was still okay.

"It'll take a moment to adjust," Terrence said, equally as calm. The monks stood side by side, arms folded in front of them. Their red robes had turned black, contrasting with their empty background. "Sometimes even the most prepared followers become disoriented here. Take your time, move around a bit. You'll need your entire consciousness to continue."

Tweek nodded, small at first but then larger. He needed to move around, that's what they said… he let go of Feldspar's hand, gently shaking out his limbs and stretching.

"You good?" Feldspar asked softly, copying him.

"Yeah… this is just really weird," Tweek whispered back, afraid to raise his voice any higher. "I feel here and not here all at the same time."

"It's kinda…kinda floaty," Feldspar said thoughtfully, trying to describe the feeling.

"Floaty, yeah," Tweek agreed. He stopped moving for a moment, that strange tunnel feeling coming back to him. He suddenly felt hyper aware of his breathing, of the coolness on his skin, the ground beneath his feet. "I think… I think I'm all here, like he said. The consciousness thing."

"Me too," Feldspar said, sounding surprised. "It's like all the rest of me suddenly caught up. I'm all here now."

"Good, good," Terrence said, nodding his head as the two looked back over to him. "You've fully entered the mindscape. Training here is the safest, as you cannot bring any harm to yourselves or us. All you're really doing is training your brain without the unnecessary fatigue and side-effects. It also offers complete and total isolation, so you can focus. The Nagasaki takes a great amount of focus."

"Like we said, we're ready to take on that challenge," Tweek replied, but deep down, he wasn't sure. He could fake his confidence to the moon and back, but he could never truly get rid of the shaky little boy he started from.

"Good, then let us begin. The Nagasaki requires absolute precision; observe." Phillip extended both arms out at the same time, slowly raising them towards the sky. A strange rumble began to emit from him as he lowered his body to a kneeling position on the ground. One hand touched the bottom of the void as his head lowered. All at once his head tilted slightly to the left, a sudden burst of green smoke exploding from his body. It filled the entire area so thick nobody could see anything for a few moments. Then, as if it had never happened, it faded away, leaving just a trace of green and a horrid scent.

"Holy fuck," Tweek whispered. Memories of the ruined garden and the attack at the ceremony flooded back to him. This was it; this was what they were looking for.

"Holy fuck is right," Terrence said, still in the exact same position as before Phillip had performed his magic. "If you had been in your mortal body, you would have absolutely been killed at such close range. This is why the Nagasaki is the only way to weaken Douchebag. It's one of the most powerful spells in the entire world."

Feldspar reached for Tweek's hand again, grasping it tightly. He didn't want to know what would have happened if Butters hadn't pulled Tweek to cover a mere 4 days ago. He almost didn't realize how badly he was trembling at the thought.

"Easy, thief, you'll break your connection to the mindscape if you become unfocused," Terrence warned. "Let's try this nice and slow. It will take some time, but if you focus on your breathing, it'll start to guide you. There is magic in all of us, friend, it just takes skill to harness it."

Feldspar nodded, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. He steadied himself before opening them again. "Okay, I'm ready. Tweek?"

"Yeah," the barbarian said softly, eyes trained on the ground. "Let's do this."

The two monks stepped closer. "We'll repeat the Nagasaki slowly- copy our movements as exactly as you can," Terrence said. In unison, the four men began to raise their arms and kneel to the ground.

"Hold it here," Phillip told them suddenly, making Tweek jump with surprise. "What you've just done is gathered your energy. Do you feel it inside of you?"

Tweek closed his eyes, trying to focus on his body. Yes, there was something in his stomach that wasn't there before. It was as if it was pulling from his fingertips and toes towards the center of his body. "Yes, yes," he said, not daring to move and disturb it. "I…I feel it."

"Me too," Feldspar chimed.

"Good, good. All you need to do is release that energy with a certain level of control. The energy release will set off a reaction strong enough to destroy anything in your path. Are you ready to try?"

Tweek kept his eyes closed, taking a deep breath. Breathe, he had said. Breathe, and let the magic guide you. "Ready."

"On the count of three, tilt your head and push everything out," Phillip instructed. "One… two…three!"

All at once, Tweek tensed his body, tilting his head just a bit to the left. With every ounce of his being he shoved that feeling in his stomach away from him, out of his body, through his head and fingers and toes. What happened next rocked his entire core- his body weakened as the explosion poofed around him, magic filling the air. In a few moments time, it had cleared away.

"Well?" Terrence said, standing back up. "How did it feel? Were you successful?"

Feldspar had collapsed on the ground, breathing hard. "You weren't wrong when you said it took a lot of strength," he muttered, "but I did it."

"Me too," Tweek said, equally winded. He stood, one hand on his knee and the other against his chest. His breathing was labored, but a sense of pride swelled inside of him. He'd done it. He'd done the Nagasaki.

"Take a moment and catch your breath," Phillip said, completely unfazed by the four-way blast. "The mindscape will heal you much faster than your body would in the mortal world. This is the crucial part- only set off a Nagasaki when you are absolutely sure you are ready. If you miss or fail, you will be too weak to save yourself."

Tweek shuddered at the thought, but he stayed quiet as he tried to heal himself. With a bit of silence and deep breathing, his body felt like before they had begun. "Okay… can I try again?"

"Of course," Terrence laughed, seeming amused. "Is that not why we're here? It does take time and practice after all."

Tweek groaned in response.

With a wave of his hand, Terrence had summoned a sort of foggy figure in a cloak. When Tweek looked up, he nearly fell over.

"Douchebag?! Are you trying to give me a HEART ATTACK?!" he shouted, absolutely baffled.

"I figured you should practice on a target, and since Douchebag is your target, blast him." Terrence stepped back, allowing plenty of space. "Barbarian, you go first."

"M-me?" Tweek asked, legs starting to tremble. He was unable to help himself as words began to fill his head.

"Tweek?" Feldspar asked, becoming concerned.

You're no better than me. You're no better than me. You're no better than me.

The words played on repeat in his head as he stared at the figure. Everything was shutting down around him, the white void becoming distorted as he panicked. His chest felt tight, eyes wide. No, not here, not now, he couldn't freeze up!

Coward, coward, you weak fucking coward!

Unable to stop himself, Tweek let out a high pitched wail, stumbling backwards, hands flying into his hair. He began to twitch wildly, pulling at it. "STOP STOP STOP STOP," he screamed, the tunneling feeling surrounding him.

"Stop, you idiot, you're disrupting your-"

Before Terrence could say another word, Tweek fell backwards onto his ass, eyes flying open. He gasped for air as he landed on his back, staring into the pitch black of the training room. He…he…

"I failed," he whimpered, hands pressing over his eyes as the tears began to flow. His chest ached as he sobbed, twitching and shaking on the hard floor.

"Tweek, what happened?" Feldspar's voice suddenly gasped. There was the sound of footsteps, then strong arms wrapping around him. "Tweek, hey, hey, it's okay, I got you…"

"No, no it's –ngh—not," he sobbed, moving so that he could wrap his arms around Feldspar. "C-Craig, I ruined everything, I'm never g-gonna be able to do this…"

"Yes you can," Feldspar begged him, a gentle hand running up and down his back. "You just did it back in the mindscape, who says you can't do it now?"

Tweek just shook his head, unable to respond. As soon as he confronted Douchebag he just knew he was going to freeze like that again. "I'm gonna doom us all… y-you'd be better off if you just did the Nagasaki alone."

"Tweek," Feldspar cooed, holding him close. "You know that's not true. I'd never do it alone. I need you… and you need me." He pulled back just enough so he could look at Tweek's face, staring into his teary, hazel eyes. "Together, remember? We promised. Together."

Tweek took a shaking breath, their eyes locked. "T-together," he said softly, nodding a little.

"There we go," Feldspar said again, copying his breath. "Just breathe, let's calm down. As soon as you're ready, we'll head back into the mindscape and finish this."

"There's no time for that," Terrence interrupted, coming closer with an alarmed look on his face. "You need to get going, and fast."

"What do you mean?" Feldspar asked, looking up, boyfriend protectively in his arms.

"We didn't realize how much time had passed. Getting back into the mindscape would take too long, let alone more practice. You at least know the basic movement. I have faith in you two- I can sense that you're especially in tune with the magic within you. If you want to save your kingdom, you're going to need to head home. Now."

Tweek looked up with wide, pleading eyes. "T-time as in…how long?"

"The day is nearly at its end," Phillip said somberly, looking towards the door. "The sun is starting to set."

It was at that moment that Tweek noticed the two monks were…different. They moved slower, almost agonizingly.

"Are you alright?"

"Don't worry about us," Terrence said, a soft smile on his face. "I told you, buddy, we're a little past our prime. Just a bit spent is all. Now hurry!"

With a reluctant sigh, Tweek stood himself up, trying to find his center. He was a bit unsteady, but fine enough. He just needed to make it back to the horses and away they'd go.

"You good?" Feldspar asked, still holding onto him to provide balance.

"Yeah, let's just go." Tweek began to move towards the door. "We have no time to waste. We need to gather up the others and just… pray for a miracle."